Indigenous Peoples Day and Columbus Day: Dates and history to know for 2024
Last year, the Biden administration issued a proclamation recognizing Indigenous Peoples Day for the third year in a row. The commemoration of Native American history and culture is now federally recognized alongside Columbus Day, which has been historically observed on the same day.
Columbus Day has been a national holiday since 1937, but in recent years some have advocated to refocus the day on Indigenous People rather than on explorers who brought violence and slavery with them on their journey to the Americas.
Here are the important dates to know this year.
When is Columbus Day 2024?
In 2024, Indigenous Peoples Day and Columbus Day fall on Monday, Oct. 14. The holidays occur annually on the second Monday of October.
Post offices will close, as well as many public schools. Some banks will also close. You can view the full list of closings here.
What is Indigenous Peoples Day? Plus, is it offensive to celebrate Columbus Day?
Is Columbus Day a federal holiday?
Columbus Day is still a federal holiday, and while some argue it celebrates Italian American heritage, others say it glorifies an exploration that led to the genocide of native peoples.
"To have had American colonialism looked at throughout history as not being a problem and celebrated as a good thing is deeply problematic to any of us who live in a (Native-American) community or reservation,” Scott Stevens, the director of the Native American and Indigenous Studies Program at Syracuse University, previously told Paste BN.
Approximately 29 states and Washington, D.C. do not celebrate Columbus Day. About 216 cities have renamed it or replaced it with Indigenous Peoples Day, according to renamecolumbusday.org. Some states recognize Indigenous Peoples Day via proclamation, while others treat it as an official holiday.
Indigenous Peoples Day has been federally recognized for three years in a row, with the Biden administration proclaiming the second Monday in October a “day in honor of our diverse history and the Indigenous peoples who contribute to shaping this Nation.”
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